Prevaricate -- A Bit of a Stretch

I was overheard today on an elevator using the phrase, "prevaricating too much." Sharing the elevator car were several coworkers who know my penchant for big words and who are understandably quite willing to rib me about it. Prevaricating, one person noted, that's lying. "How much prevaricating is too much?" quipped another.

It took me a couple of hours to get to a dictionary and see if I had indeed bungled the term (wouldn't be the first time). Though I don't have my trusty OED handy, I'm relieved to note that several online dictionaries have vindicated me. To prevaricate is to stretch the truth. (If there were an emoticon for a fist pump, I'd put it here.)

Merriam-Webster gives the definition: "to deviate from the truth: equivocate." Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary says: 'To shift or turn from one side to the other, from the direct course, or from truth; to speak with equivocation; to shuffle; to quibble." The American Heritage Dictionary gives its meaning as: "to stray from or evade the truth; equivocate." But, yes, right afterward it says, "See synonyms at lie."

So my colleagues weren't wrong, either. Lie is given as a synonym for prevaricate by several sources as are fib, falsify and deceive. So are dodge, evade, exaggerate, hedge, beat around the bush, and stretch the truth. I think I can indeed argue, given the nuances of this word, that you can prevaricate, or stretch the truth, too much till it becomes an outright lie.

But that begs the question, when is a lie a lie? Isn't the purpose of stretching the truth the same as a bald-faced lie, namely, to deceive? Are there shades of deception? The psychology of lying is a whole fascinating realm. This New York Times article talks about studies showing that exaggeration is psychologically different from lying in that it brings about none of the anxiety associated with lying. This LiveScience.com article on why we lie says it's a matter of self esteem and that "though many animals engage in deliberately misleading another, only humans are wired to deceive both themselves and others."

If we agree that a prevaricator is distinct from a liar, then the old "Liar, liar, pants on fire!" taunt won't work for the former crowd and we need a new one. Hmm -- "Prevaricator, prevaricator, pants in an incinerator?"

Dictionary Definition
Pronounced: [pri-var'-i-keyt]
Roots: Latin vāricāre meaning to straddle, derived from Latin vārus meaning bent.
1. To stray from or evade the truth; equivocate.